


It Started with a Blizzard

by backtothestart02



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: AU, F/M, Romance, Smut, beginning relationship, snowstorm
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-11
Updated: 2020-05-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:00:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24132466
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/backtothestart02/pseuds/backtothestart02
Summary: AU - Barry and Iris find their footing in a new relationship after their run-in at the airport. // Sequel to 'Blizzard in July'
Relationships: Barry Allen/Iris West, Henry Allen/Nora Allen
Comments: 5
Kudos: 44





	It Started with a Blizzard

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Jennlee44](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jennlee44/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Blizzard in July](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20467139) by [backtothestart02](https://archiveofourown.org/users/backtothestart02/pseuds/backtothestart02). 



> A continuation for BiJ was commissioned, and I really wanted to keep that as a two-shot, so sequel fic here we come! I hope you enjoy this beginning chap. It's very fluffy. :)
> 
> Many thanks to sendtherain for beta'ing.

Not a fleck of snow in the air or on the ground since take-off, the plane ride was smooth and comfortable for all the passengers. It improved the mood of even the grumpiest passenger, who had been perturbed by last night’s blizzard delaying flights. That probably would’ve been Iris had she not run into Barry – and spent the night with him. That had a way of slowing things down and even being grateful for a delayed plane ride to a meeting she didn’t really want to go to anyway.

Barry, on the other hand, was still trying to process how lucky his night had turned out to be. Of course, he was sad to have missed his mother’s birthday party, but he’d texted her to explain his delay, and she’d understood. He would stop by his parents’ house first thing after the plane landed.

But Iris…

Well, Iris was a complication he wasn’t quite sure what to do with.

He didn’t want her out of his sight. That much was certain. He’d told her he thought what they had would definitely go somewhere, and he’d meant it, but once they landed, reality outside the blizzard, outside the airport and the hotel room, and hell, out of the bed, was very uncertain.

He didn’t know if Iris lived in Central City. He guessed she didn’t if she was flying there. He didn’t live in Central City either, but he planned to stay the week at his parents’ place, since he hadn’t seen them in a while.

What happened once they both got their luggage from the baggage claim and exited the airport doors?

He hadn’t even asked what the situation was with her meeting. There had to still be one if she had gotten on the same plane as him, right?

He was overthinking, and he knew it, but he couldn’t help it. His dream girl had unexpectedly been at the airport the same time as him, in the same place, in front of the same gate, planning to go on the same plane, and – once drunk, had dragged him into a bathroom and made love to him.

Made _love_?

Okay, maybe that time it had been the booze talking. But when they reached their hotel room and landed on the bed together, and oh, yeah – when he halted the sex to tell her he had a crush on her in high school and she said she’d had a crush on him too – that had to be more than a hot fuck driven by drunkenness in the middle of a blizzard.

Barry probably wouldn’t have had any hope at all for a future with Iris in it if she hadn’t so wistfully asked if they had one. Now he was determined they would. He just didn’t know all the details, and that worried him.

A yawn from Iris interrupted his thoughts just as the pilot interrupted the silent atmosphere to announce they’d be arriving soon in Central City.

“Ohh, I hate this part.” Iris frowned, covering her ears.

He had to smile at how adorably worried she looked.

“Why’s that?”

She turned to look at him.

“Do you have some gum?”

He laughed lightly but dug around in his pocket.

“I think so, yeah.” He handed her a stick. “Your ears pop going down?”

She nodded with a shudder. “Terribly. It’s the one thing I hate about riding in planes.”

“Thankfully, I don’t have that problem.”

She narrowed her eyes at him.

“Are you gloating?”

He laughed again, then quickly silenced himself.

“Of course not.”

She looked at him suspiciously, not believing him one bit, then stripped the gum of its foil and stuck it into her mouth, chewing immediately and madly, lowering her head between her knees and covering her ears tightly as the plane started to lower.

Barry almost chuckled once more, but her soft moan when the pain hit her eardrums made him sympathize, and he rubbed her back gently until the plane came to a stop on the runway, slowly finding its way to the appropriate gate.

“Better?” he asked when she came up to look out her window.

“I will be,” she said. “Still can’t hear very well, but I’m sure that’ll go away as the day goes on.”

He smiled. “I’m sure too.”

They waited for the pilot’s go ahead for everyone to get off the plane, and then were painfully reminded of the fact that they’d chosen to sit in almost the back row.

Iris groaned, but Barry took her hand and kissed the back of it.

“I don’t regret sitting next to you,” he said.

Iris’ heart leapt in her chest.

“I don’t regret sitting next to you either.”

She leaned towards him, nuzzled his face, then kissed his lips, sighing contently.

A grumpy old man in the sole seat behind them groaned in disgust, which made them lift their heads, but they decided not to let it bother them, continuing to kiss until the row a few ahead of them had been emptied.

“Come on,” Barry said. “Let’s get our things.”

He took her hand, intertwined their fingers, and led her down the aisle after they’d retrieved their carry-on bags.

Iris took a breath of air after they’d emptied the long passageway ramp leading from the plane to the gate and sighed in relief.

“Oh, my God, we’re free.”

Barry laughed.

“Do you need to call anybody or should we head to the baggage claim?”

Her eyes widened at his words.

“That’s actually…a good idea. I texted my boss to tell him I wouldn’t be able to make it yesterday, and he never responded. I hope I’m not fired.”

Barry frowned. “You still came on the flight even though it was just one meeting?”

“Oh, it’s not. Didn’t I mention that? It’s a convention. All day meetings for the whole weekend. Yesterday was just one meeting because it was the check-in day.”

“Oh.” His eyes lit up. She’d be in town for a few days. Busy mostly, but she’d still be nearby. That was hopeful. “Well, go ahead and call then. I have to call my mom anyway.”

“Okay.”

Iris pulled her phone out of her pocket, bit her bottom lip, and waited for her boss to pick up her call.

“Please don’t fire me. Please…please…please…”

…

Barry hung up the phone, pleased that his last-minute plan to bring Iris along with him to his parents’ house was a raving success – at least with his parents. He still had Iris to convince, but he had a good feeling about it. They’d met her before and liked her _and_ knew of his borderline obsessive crush on her. His mother, Nora, was practically ecstatic on the other end when he told her how they’d run into each other. Though he neglected to inform her that they shared the same hotel room or got drunk together, let alone anything else. He’d need to tell Iris an amended story that wasn’t quite so scandalous but was still believable.

Nora Allen was sweetly innocent and oblivious to all things he didn’t tell her. His father, on the other hand, could see right through him and would probably pin him down later, demanding he tell him what really happened. That would be awkward, as it tended to be, but he would endure it if it meant spending a little more time with who he hoped he could call his girlfriend in the near future.

“Barry!”

He was too stuck in his own head to hear him the first time she called out to him, but he turned just in time to see her running towards him and calling his name multiple times as he did. His lips quirked at the corner, seeing her so silly, so joyful, and directing that energy at him. He almost fell over when she used her weight to lunge up and hug and kiss him.

“Long-awaited reunion?” An older woman nearby asked.

“We saw each other five minutes ago,” Barry shared, which made Iris’ face fill with heat, but she was still smiling.

The older woman’s counterpart slipped his arm around her waist and guided her away.

“Let’s leave the lovebirds be,” he chuckled, muttering something about their luggage and transportation that neither Barry nor Iris paid much attention to.

“What is it?” Barry asked, holding her close, his smile so wide his cheeks hurt.

“I’m not fired!” Iris said excitedly, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him down to kiss him again. “Oh, my God. I thought I was going to be, and now I’m not.”

“What happened?” he asked between kisses.

“My boss was sick, so they cancelled the meeting. They sent an e-mail notifying me, but it ended up in my spam folder somehow. They’ve rescheduled it for a few hours from now. Isn’t that great news?!” She squealed, and Barry couldn’t help but laugh; though a part of him felt unsettled, since a few hours from now didn’t give him much time with her. He hid his minor disappointment well though.

“That _is_ great news.” He chuckled. “Is there anything you need to do before you get there?” he asked.

She bit her bottom lip, thinking.

“Well, I definitely have to shower and change clothes. I can do that at the hotel, though.”

“ _Or_ ,” Barry hedged, introducing the topic daringly.

She blinked. “Or, what?”

“You could come with me to my parents’ house and get ready there. We could spend the afternoon together, and I could pick you up after your meeting…we could do ice cream or something.”

He noticed the exact moment she pulled away from him emotionally and worried he’d ruined everything.

“Your parents’ house, huh?”

He nodded slowly. “Yeah… They’re real sweet people. I’m sure they’d love having you.”

“I’m sure they are really nice, but…Barry.” She lowered her voice. “Isn’t that a bit soon? We haven’t even been on a date yet.”

“Yet,” he said, with a grin, deciding to focus on the positive. “I like the sound of that.”

Iris rolled her eyes, but she was smiling.

“Focus, Barry.” She hit him playfully.

He sighed, then pulled her close.

“Look, okay, I know this feels a lot like ‘meeting the parents’.”

“Uh-huh.” She nodded, worry in her voice.

“But it’s not really,” he said.

“How?”

“They’ve met you before,” he said cheerfully.

“ _When_?” she demanded.

“In high school,” he said. “You came over a few times. We were friends, remember?”

“Yes, but Barry, that was 10 years ago. They probably don’t even remem-”

“I just called them. They definitely do.”

Heat flooded her cheeks again.

“Do they remember me as your friend or your crush?”

Barry turned a bright pink.

“Does it matter?” he squeaked.

“Kinda,” she offered. “I don’t know…maybe not. I just…don’t want to spend the whole time with your parents knowingly looking at me, wondering if we… _did_ anything.”

“You don’t have to worry about that,” he said. “My mom is a saint. She won’t suspect a thing.”

“And your dad?” Barry paused. “What about your _dad_ , Barry?”

“My dad won’t…be a problem…for you.”

She frowned. “What does that mean?”

“Just…trust me, okay? We don’t have to spend the whole time there, but I have to stop by to say Happy Birthday to my mom properly. We’ll have to do a little small talk since you’ll be with me, but then we can go, I promise.”

She sighed.

“I have to be at that meeting at 1 o’clock, Barry.”

“You will be.”

“That means getting to the hotel before then to get things arranged. And I can’t eat lunch, because they’ll serve it at the meeting.”

“No lunch. Got it.”

“And promise you won’t embarrass me.”

“I promise. You have my word.”

She looked at him suspiciously, and then finally relented.

“All right. Let’s go meet your mom and dad.”

He took her hands, bent his head to kiss her lips again, and smiled mischievously when they parted.

“What?” she asked, barely suppressing a giggle.

“Well, we have to get our luggage first.”

She hit him playfully again, and he laughed, recoiling out of reach before wrapping his arms around her waist and picking her off the ground for a few steps.

“Come on.” He gestured his head towards the long walkway. “It’s this way.”

She shook her head at him, but quickly caught up, sneaking her hand into his as they made their way to the baggage claim.


End file.
